Sunday, May 21, 2023

JOHN SCOTT MANSFIELD [1943-2023]

John Mansfield and Art Goodtimes after taping a KOTO-FM
radio interview at the media room in the Norwood Public School, 2019.
[Photo by Cara Pallone]

Whitewater ... Coming back to San Miguel County where he'd made his home. Didn't feel good. Something wrong. Pulled over in time. Not crashing. Hands on the wheel. Expired. Samaritans lifted him out of the car. Laid him by the road. Tried CPR. Nothing ... Couple months before he'd found his Mesa Rose coffee club buddy, Charlie, face-down on the ice where alone he'd slipped, carrying firewood. Six hours. Neck broken. Unable to reach the phone. His lifeline since his wife had died. Hypothermic. Frost-bit. Hospitalized. Transferred. Nothing left. He died.  ... My last email to John asking about Charlie's memorial. Celebration of Life. The wake of his passing from our lives ... Now John too. Gone ... His wry smiling zen eye on the day's promenade. "Hello," we call to each other, lost in our meanders, shuffling by. Waving. All of itki, passing. Pastiche of time & place. Interwoven fabric. Needle & thread. Rapids around the bend & then calm. And the slow deep pull of memory's currents.

 

Posted by at

13 comments:

  1. AnonymousMay 21, 2023 at 7:20 PM

    Oh, Artfull, yes, yes. I love the river at the end. Eddy out. Slow water.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Art GoodtimesMay 22, 2023 at 5:21 PM

      Just heard Mike Rozycki's account of rafting the Grand Canyon. Seems like the best metaphor for our lives...

      Delete
  2. AnonymousMay 21, 2023 at 7:22 PM

    So sorry for your loss of John. Your words are heartfelt.

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousMay 21, 2023 at 8:25 PM

    Such real and beautiful things you say about John and your relationship

    ReplyDelete
  4. Tammy DMay 22, 2023 at 2:50 AM

    Always in the flow, so many loves come and then they go...the heart grows wider at the delta...Love you, T

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Art GoodtimesMay 22, 2023 at 5:22 PM

      Rosemerry's dazzling new book, All the Honey, talks about how our hearts grow wider at the delta of joy & grief.

      Delete
  5. Amy HannonMay 22, 2023 at 6:04 AM

    Ah, another soul moves along. A tear in my eye...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Art GoodtimesMay 22, 2023 at 5:23 PM

      A tear in the eye and a zen smile in the heart

      Delete
  6. Art GoodtimesMay 22, 2023 at 5:20 PM

    and we get to bounce around in the eddies

    ReplyDelete
  7. Tara MillerJune 3, 2023 at 7:02 AM

    A tear in my eye as well. He pulled over, not a crash. Metaphor for a peaceful passage, a choice perhaps. Sending love to you, my friend.

    ReplyDelete

Comments welcome and civil dialogue encouraged

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)